SPIRIT OF AMERICA

If you’re lucky/old enough to remember the year-long Fourth Of July celebration that took place across the country in 1976, you might recall the weird state of the American auto industry, too. Gas rationing had forced the automakers to make their big, bloated Mustangs and Darts and pickups and Cordobas and Novas somehow “efficient.” Which turned out things like the Mustang II and the Pacer and the Chevette. But the “Spirit Of ’76″ had caught hold and they figured an appropriately limited-edition paint scheme would be a good idea…maybe move some product, right?

So, in the awkward way the design studios and the engineers were stumbling through new smog laws and fuel efficiency mandates, they so too stumbled through some Bicentennial red-white-n-blue decal kits and paint schemes for their ’76 lineup. Nothing like some sparse layout afterthoughts to slap across some rust-prone sheetmetal to celebrate the nation’s 200th birthday! But you know what? In the light of nostalgia, we absolutely LOVE this shit. Take a smogged, 15mpg cruise down memory lane with a few of these gems below. The matching interiors really made these models, we have to say…